The mysterious disappearance of gallons of water from a village's supply is being investigated by Anglian Water.

Residents of Ingham, in Suffolk, have complained that showers and taps suddenly run dry and they have no water for up to 45 minutes at a time without any warning.

The water company said it believes a thief is tapping into the supply and has launched an investigation.

Keith Boswell, the vice chairman of Ingham Parish Council, said the problem has been going on for several weeks.

Some residents have called out plumbers after the sudden drop then rise in pressure affected their combi boilers, he said, while others have complained about dirty water when the supply returns.

"I was watering my tomato plants and halfway through it just stopped," Mr Boswell said.

Mr Boswell said many people in the village had contacted Anglian Water and were disappointed that nobody from the company had attended a parish council meeting last week to discuss the problem although the company is due to meet some residents next week. "We have only 150 houses in a small village and really we are not big enough to be annoying," he said.

Mr Boswell said he was curious about Anglian Water's claim that someone was stealing large quantities of water. "The fire brigade takes water from the same main and it has no effect," he said.

An Anglian Water spokesman said the firm was staying in touch with residents while it investigated the source of the problem and would speak to them next week to discuss their concerns.

"Due to the intermittent nature of the supply disruptions, it is our belief that a large amount of water is being taken directly, and illegally, from our water network. This could be from a fire hydrant, for instance," he said. "We will continue to investigate this, and will take the appropriate action to ensure our customers' supply is not interrupted. This is our priority."